No Subject
by Solstice Zero
Summary: When the Mainframe was restored and the connection to the Hub computers reestablished after the wreckage had been cleared away, Jack had one new message waiting in his inbox." Jack/Ianto. Spoilers for CoE.


When the Mainframe was restored and the connection to the Hub computers reestablished after the wreckage had been cleared away, Jack had one new message waiting in his inbox.

**Sender: I. Jones  
Subject: **_**(no subject)**_

The video opened without prompting.

Ianto sat in Jack's chair – what had been Jack's chair, months ago in what had been Jack's office. He sat looking uncomfortable, straightening his tie, eyes directed low and to the right of the camera. Then he looked up. "Sir." He sighed. He cleared his throat, his face softening slightly. "Jack. I'm sorry that you're seeing this. We always knew-" He trailed off.

He didn't seem to know what to do with his hands, but he laid them on the desk in front of him and directed his gaze down at them, at his long fingers spread evenly over the mess of papers that Jack probably never actually got to in the end. "I obviously took this idea from Tosh. It helped you, I think, with her. With Owen. I think that seeing how well she understood her – her place. Her-" He paused, trying to think of a way to phrase it. "I think that seeing her knowledge that she would die helped you to deal with it. I think it was better for you to know that she was aware the whole time of just how short her time was." He looked back up into the camera. "I'm well aware – I've always been well aware that I'll die young and tragic." His mouth quirked slightly. "I can't tell you that I like the idea, but it's better than dying old and incontinent." And a very brief smile appeared on his face, before it disappeared behind a hand that he raised to rub his brow.

"Jack, I'm sorry. I know this is hard for you. Losing people. You lose everyone." And Ianto looked so young. And so fucking tragic. "You lose everyone you care about. And despite our absolute inability to talk about it, I know that you care about me. I care about you. And I know you're hurting right now." He shook his head. "I just hope – God, Jack, I hope that Gwen's all right." He looked suddenly fearful – of some event, some future thing that might take them both away from Jack at the same time, something just occurring to him. "You need her. She holds you back when you need it. I spur you on when I'm not shouting at you for being an idiot. I follow you." He smiled a little again. "I'll follow you anywhere."

He tapped his fingers on the desk. "This is a lot less ordered than I would have liked it to be. A little rushed, maybe, because I'm terrible at this sort of thing and you know it." He looked at the camera. "I won't say that I love you. It's a little maudlin, isn't it? And I'd be stealing Tosh's thunder." Again, the little smile. "But I think you know. If it isn't obvious by now, or if I haven't said it yet. If I didn't-" He cleared his throat, remembering he was dead now, remembering that the Jack watching this was a Jack who had lost Ianto somehow. His face grew serious. "If I didn't say it before I died, I think you knew anyway. And I know that you-" He shook his head. "For some reason. Through some insane urge you have to throw yourself at heartache. I know that you love – loved? I know that you love me." He sighed. "Which is sort of terrible, but also sort of nice, at the moment." And he laughed.

"God, I really am awful at this." He leaned back in the chair, the heels of his hands in the hollows of his eyes, suit jacket opening at the sides. His hands dropped and he sighed, staring up at the ceiling of Jack's office. "Anyway. That's all, I suppose. I don't have a grand speech planned to help you get over it." He straightened up. "We both know what grief is. It's time. You have a lot of it. You are allowed to get over it. If you spent all of your time in this universe grieving the people you've lost-" He trailed off. "You can't live that way, Jack. But I'd like it if you didn't forget me entirely. As long as the memory doesn't cause you pain. Maybe it's a little too much to be asked to be remembered forever, but-" He shrugged. "You say I have the nicest arse in Wales. Just remember that. Ianto Jones. Wales. Excellent arse." He laughed again, then looked up, over the camera. He said quietly, "I think I hear you coming. Oh, that's disturbing and a bit foul, isn't it? Well, it's the perfect goodbye for us, then. Goodbye, Jack." He smiled. "It was good."

The video ended.

Gwen poked her head into the room where they were storing the computer equipment for the moment. "Jack, have you found-" She frowned. "Jack, are you- Jack? Jack!"

She ran inside, her arms outstretched to him.


End file.
